a review of books, websites, movies, or anything worth reviewing with comments about libraries and librarianship

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

Most Checked Out Biographies at Thomas Ford, 1999-2008

I am weeding lots of books this summer. When I ran a report of our biography section, I sorted it by number of checkouts. I was slightly surprised by the results. I knew the top two books would be at the top but I did not realize that the third and fourth books were that popular. I think book discussion groups may have influenced this list. I also notice that eight of the ten books are memoirs. The two books that are third person accounts about historical figures utilize letters and diaries heavily.

Here's the list, based on January 1999 to date (the length of time our library system has used its current vendor):

1. John Adams by David McCullough (57)

2. It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life by Lance Armstrong (55)

3. The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother by James McBride (52)

4. The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeannette Walls (49)

(tie) A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers (49)

6. Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama (38)

9. Population - 485: Meeting Your Neighbors One Siren at a Time by Michael Perry (35)

(tie) The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio: How My Mother Raise 10 Kids on 25 Words or Less by Terry Ryan (35)

The checkouts include when our copies were loaned to other libraries, but they do not show when our readers got the same titles through interlibrary loan. I assume the two balance out, i. e. that our copies have gone to other libraries as much as other libraries' copies have come into our library.

I am obviously not deleting these books.

I'd be interested in learning what the top circulating biographies are in your library, too.

Read On ... Biography

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About Me

I am a reference librarian at the Thomas Ford Memorial Library who graduated from the University of Texas at Austin. I have worked in public libraries in Texas, Missouri, and Illinois. I am interested in promoting reference services and the reading of good books.